Spotlight on Grants

CSLA Develops Model Program

The University has received a three-year grant totaling $889,172 from the United States Department of Health and Human Services to develop a Model Hispanic Health Careers Opportunity Program (MHHCOP). The grant is the only one of its kind awarded in the United States. The project will be directed by principal investigator Genaro Lopez (Biology and Microbiology), CSLA Health Science adviser, and co-principal investigator Jorge Lambrinos (Director, Roybal Institute for Applied Gerontology).

Designed to increase the number of Hispanics in the health professions and associated health profession fields, the new MHHCOP builds on the University's Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP), established in 1984 and one of the most successful in the country. Of the existing HCOP program, Lopez notes: "Sixty percent of Cal State L.A. students who apply are accepted into medical and other health professional schools; of that 60 percent, more than 80 percent of the accepted students were HCOP members."

The new MHHCOP will operate in collaboration with other higher education institutions such as UCLA and UCI, the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, several community colleges, and seven local high schools. For information, call Genaro Lopez, (323) 343-2188, or Jorge Lambrinos, (323) 343-4724.

Air Force Contract for Training Program to Identify At-Risk Youth

The University has received a $340,000 Air Force contract to develop a comprehensive training program for Air Force personnel working with at-risk youth. The project is a multidisciplinary collaborative effort of a multiethnic team of men and women who have extensive background in research and direct intervention programs for at-risk youth.

Overseeing the program are: principal investigator Randall B. Lindsey (Administration and Counseling); co-principal investigator Deborah Baskin (Criminal Justice); Kikanza Nuri Robins, consultant in Communication Studies and Urban Education; and Marcel Soriano (Administration and Counseling).

For information, call Randall Lindsey at (323) 343-4427.

Major U.S. Department of Education Grant

Cal State L.A. has been awarded a five-year, $1.75 million grant by the U.S. Department of Education under the Title III - Strengthening Institutions category, to meet the academic needs of its students and to increase the undergraduate persistence rate at Cal State L.A.

For information, call principal investigator Alfredo Gonzalez (Dean of Undergraduate Studies), (323) 343-3830.

Grant from Society of Manufacturing Engineers

The Education Foundation of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) has awarded the School of Engineering and Technology an in-kind gift of software valued at $495,800. The package includes AutoCAD R13, AutoCAD Designer, 3D Studio, CADKEY, Tool Designer's Assistant (CADKEY/AutoCAD), MSC/Aries Predictive Engineering, Manufacturers Technologies, Platinum Advanced Mfg/Financial, and MECHANICA. Firms that donate the software to the Foundation include: Autodesk, Inc., Cadkey, Inc., MacNeal Schwendler Corp., Manufacturers Technologies, Westwood & Best Software Corp., and Rasna Corp.

The CAD/CAM software, obtained through the efforts of Virgil A. Seaman (Technology), introduces manufacturing topics into new and existing courses and underscores the key goal of the Southern California Coalition for Education in Manufacturing Engineering (SCCEME), a consortium of six local universities including Cal State L.A. Ram Manvi (Mechanical Engineering) is the CSLA's SCCEME coordinator.

For more information, contact Virgil Seaman, (323) 343-4553.